Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation (Kahramaa) has tendered the main construction packages to build five reservoirs in the country as part of its $3bn Water Security Mega Reservoirs project.

Kahramaa has invited contractors to submit bids for five separate packages – A, B, C, D and E – to build the reservoirs and associated infrastructure at the five locations planned for the schemes. The five sites where the reservoirs will be located are: Umm Birka; Umm Slal; Al-Thumama; Rawdhat; Rashid; and Abu Nakhla.

Contractors have until 5 June to submit bids for the deals.

The contracts will involve the construction, testing and commissioning of the reservoirs, pumping stations, pipework and the instrumentation, control and automation (ICA) works at each site.

In November 2013, Kahramaa received bids for two deals to build transmission pipelines for the reservoirs project.

The work will involve providing water mains and fibre-optic cable ducts along the Qatar National Utility Corridor, from Rawdat Rashid to the existing Ras Abu Fontas mains. The first package will involve providing and installing 70.1 kilometres of 1,600-millimetre (mm) pipeline and 20.6km of 1,200mm mains pipeline. The second package will involve installing 2.9km of 1,600mm, 38.2km of 1,400mm and 42.5km of 1,200mm pipeline.

The Water Security Mega Reservoirs scheme has been designed to provide seven days of strategic water storage within its network, which will shore up the country’s reserve water supplies to protect against any future disruptions in supply.

Each reservoir site will contain up to 10 reservoir modules, which could be the largest of their type in the world. The reservoirs and pipeline network, with associated pumping stations, are planned to store up to 15 million cubic metres of potable water.

The scheme will connect the desalination plants at Ras Laffan and Ras Abu Fontas, which will skirt the west side of Doha. The pipeline will also connect to five reservoirs on the outskirts of the capital, which will be linked by about 200km of large-diameter pipeline.

The concept design for the reservoirs project was completed in early 2011 by French project manager Sogreah, now part of the Artelia Group. In February 2012, Kahramaa appointed the UK’s Hyder to provide engineering and environmental consultancy services for the scheme. The scope of Hyder’s work includes pre-design studies, preliminary design, detailed design, tender procurement and construction supervision.